Changes
by SilentPhantom757
Summary: GSR : Can they change their relationship for the better?
1. Work it Out?

Sara sat curled up on her bed, staring at her wall. Its light yellow had been picked on a whim when she'd first moved in.

Now more than anything, the bright happy color was the last thing she wanted to have to stare at.  
  
Shifting to the left to pick up a glass of water off her bedside table she took a sip and leaned back against the headboard and held the dripping glass to her forehead.  
  
"Oh.... life is hell."  
  
It seemed as if what had happened had taken more than one single night.   
  
Funny even, that it only took a matter of hours to ruin her life. By doing something so stupid…she knew she needed to stop.

She knew better than anybody that a few drinks no matter how light wouldn't ease her troubled mind or make her drive home every night any better.  
  
She took the glass from her forehead as a drop of water slipped down her face and onto her lips.

She stuck her tongue out barely and dried it up, reaching over again to set the glass down.  
  
As she leaned back against the headrest again she heard a noise coming from the hallway.  
  
"What the hell?"   
  
....Oh my God! No….no he's not really here still is he?  
  
At that moment she saw the door creak open a little and his head poke through.  
  
As he smiled kindly at her and stepped into the room she felt her throat constricting.  
  
"Sara....how are you feeling this morning?"  
  
His voice reverberated in her head. She couldn't move or speak and felt her chest about to explode from her sudden realization that she was holding her breath.  
  
It suddenly came out in a whoosh and Grissom looked at her carefully, moving toward the bed more.  
  
She suddenly felt her mind scramble awake and found herself faking smile and finally replying, "Okay I guess."  
  
He smiled as he reached the end of the bed and looked ahead at her.  
  
Sara looked away for a moment, then back at him, a question on her lips.  
  
Grissom watched her intently and after a moment sighed and said, "What's your question Sara?"  
  
Surprised she looked up at his face. Was she that obvious....all the time? God she hoped not.  
  
She felt a small smile breaking forth on her lips. "Um...."  
  
She brought her hand up and lightly brushed it through her bed head hair.  
  
'God..I must look like shit.'  
  
"Um....well....I'm just uh....curious as to why you're still here? I mean....I'd have thought you'd leave last night, after you um...." She looked around the room then back up at him.  
  
"..took care of me"  
  
He looked down at the floor and then at the wall.  
  
"I didn't think it would be a good idea to leave you alone. I thought....maybe...you'd need someone to talk to...and if you did...I'd be right here."  
  
Sara couldn't suppress the snort or disbelief and slowly pulled the covers up to get out of bed.

Well....he was in her house...still...and she would walk around in her sweats and a t-shirt if she so chose.  
  
Grissom watched as she got up and started to make the bed.  
  
"I deserved that. I um.... haven't been the greatest source of friendship lately."  
  
"Yeah...try two years."  
  
He took a step back from the bed as she came to the end to pull the comforter up.  
  
Leaning against the dresser he bit his lip and smiled lightly.  
  
"We could fix that. I mean....I'd be willing to...if you wanted to."  
  
"Willing to? Grissom...I don't know if I can take this anymore. Whether I'm willing or not...if I get to close or say the wrong thing, you'll close up and push me away as you've been so famous for this past year."  
  
He stood, glued to the spot, not knowing what to say. 'Nothing unusual' He thought.  
  
She suddenly turned and looked at him.  
  
"Look...I'm sorry about last night. It'll never happen again, believe me...but you don't need to stay here to baby-sit me. I will be throwing out every bottle of wine and _Jack_ that I own. And if you're as uncomfortable talking to me as I'm guessing you are, I'm sure you'd rather go home."  
  
Grissom stood still looking at her face. Her eyes looked so hurt, her face pale. She looked like she would fall apart at any moment.  
  
Grissom swallowed and stepped closer.

"Sara, I'm not here to baby-sit you, I didn't stay here last night to baby-sit you. I stayed because I care about you. Your safety and well being. I thought maybe we could talk this morning; try to figure out what to do about our friendship. To be truthful I've missed it. I hope you have too. So lets make some breakfast and talk."  
  
Sara stood silently. A stunned look on her face. This was almost as surprising as his taking her hand last night and not screaming at her.  
  
Not able to say a word, she lightly nodded her head. Grissom smiled brightly.  
  
"Great....now, would you rather stay here, or go out?"  
  
Another question that made her breathing stop. She thought she should be excited at the fact of Grissom offering to taker her "out", but....this wasn't that kind of thing.

He seemed sincere, like he really did want to talk to her, on friendly terms...which was probably how it would always be, since he 'Couldn't do it'.  
  
"I think...I'd rather stay here. I'm too tired to go out."  
  
"Okay....what are you hungry for?"  
  
Sara thought a moment, trying to think of what all she had in the apartment.  
  
"Eggs I guess...if that's what you want too, but there's cereal and oatmeal in the kitchen too if you want to make that instead?"  
  
"Nope....eggs are good. I'll make that."  
  
"Okay."  
  
They both stood in silence for a moment.  
  
Sara decided that she desperately needed a hot shower and that she'd shoo him off.  
  
"Okay....well...you know where the kitchen is. I'm gonna go take a shower and get dressed."  
  
"Alright."  
  
He walked to the door and slowly walked out, shutting it quietly behind him.  
  
Sara stood next to the bed in silence.

Wow. What is this? Oh don't ask questions....this is the first chance you've gotten that he's actually wanted to talk to you. Go get ready or before you get yourself together he might rethink what he said and disappear.  
  
She walked over to the dresser and pulled the drawer open. Gathering some under clothes and picking up a towel off the chair by the bathroom door, she slipped into the bathroom and shut the door quietly behind her.


	2. Breakfast

Stepping out into the hallway, Sara sniffed in the delicious smell of breakfast.

She was definitely hungry. She forced a tired smile as she entered the living room and crossed over into the kitchen.  
  
She paused at the kitchen entryway, looking intently at Grissom. His shirt sleeves were pushed up, a towel over his shoulder. Unknowing to her presence, he went on with his tasks.

He reached over and opened her cupboard and pulled out two mugs for coffee. At that moment, the coffee pot beeped and Grissom turned around, he jumped a little, recovered quickly and smiled lightly.  
  
"Oh…don't sneak up on me like that."  
  
Sara smirked and walked over to the coffee pot across from him and pulled it out of the percolator.   
Grissom turned and picked up the mugs and walked over to her, holding one out.  
  
Sara filled it and handed it back to him, and took the other mug from his extended hand.  
  
After pouring her coffee, she walked over to the fridge, holding it between her fingertips, blowing into the mug. She set the mug on the counter and opened the fridge and rummaged around a moment.

As she pulled out a box of 'French Vanilla' cream she called out to Grissom asking if he wanted anything special in his coffee.  
  
"Ahh…I'll just have a tiny bit of sugar in mine."  
  
Sara nodded her head; she sidestepped and opened the carton and poured some of it into her mug, closed it and set it back in the fridge, kicking it shut with her foot.  
  
She turned around to see Grissom setting two plates of eggs and toast on each side of the small table.   
  
He walked back over to the sink, set down the towel and picked up the small bowl of sugar and brought it over to the table.  
  
Sara stood watching, wondering if this was real or if she was having some ridiculous dream.  
  
When he turned around and looked at her expectantly, she knew this couldn't be dream, that it was real.  
  
She bowed her head a little then walked over to the left side of the table and sat down, at that moment Grissom pulled out his seat and sat down.  
  
Sara reached for her fork and speared a piece of scrambled egg and took a bite.  
  
She smiled lightly at the delicious flavor and looked up to see Grissom studying her.  
  
Taking another bite and swallowing it she looked at him quizzically.

"What….you've seen me eat before, what's so different this time?"  
  
Grissom smirked and started eating, after a few bites, he waved his fork a little and said, "There's nothing weird about the way you eat, I was just gauging how much you liked the food."  
  
"Ah…well…its good."  
  
Grissom nodded and they went on eating. At first the silence was uncomfortable, but after a few more glances and tiny smiles the silence was comforting.  
  
As Sara took her last bite, Grissom took a sip from his mug and cleared his throat. Sara looked up, waiting to see what he'd say.  
  
He looked at her a moment, and decided to dive right in and get it over with.  
  
"Sara…I really think it would be of great help to you if you would reconsider taking a few weeks of vacation."  
  
Sara scanned the room a moment, then back at him.  
  
"Well….uh…I don't know, I guess, but….What am I going to do, there's only so much I can do here and then the rest of the time until I come back, I'd be spending my days counting the minutes till I return."  
  
Grissom smiled and pushed his plate away. "Well, who says you have to stay here. You could…go visit your family, go away somewhere."  
  
"Yeah….maybe."  
  
She looked down at the floor, trying to think of where she'd actually go. 'I don't go on vacations…they get boring after a while.'  
  
"Sara."  
  
Sara looked up, suddenly realizing that he'd been calling her name.  
  
"Yeah?" she said breathlessly.  
  
"Are you okay?"  
  
"Yeah…fine."  
  
"No…I mean….last night."  
  
Grissom watched, as her eyes seemed to cloud over. Anger, guilt, sadness, regret were the few thinks he could see. He wished he hadn't asked that. Sara suddenly looked up at him.  
  
"Uhm…you know…I'm feeling kinda tired now. I think I want to go back to sleep."  
  
Grissom swallowed the lump in his throat and slowly nodded his head.  
  
Sara slowly stood and started to pick up her plate when Grissom reached over and softly touched her wrist.  
  
She reared back in surprise and looked at him.  
  
For a moment he seemed at a loss for words, then quickly recovered and said, "Don't worry…I'll clean up. You go back and sleep. I'll let myself out."  
  
Sara watched as he stood and picked up the plates and walked over to the sink and set them down.

He came back to pick up the coffee mugs, and she slowly turned to walk away.   
  
Before she got too far Grissom reached for her shoulder and pulled her back.  
  
"Sara…"  
  
She turned and looked up, a confused look on her face.  
  
He seemed to be wrestling with some internal monster, but before Sara could say anything he pulled her towards him in a comforting hug.  
  
Sara was in pure shock as her arms hung limp at her sides. She sensed her own stiffness and tried to make herself relax.

She felt Grissom start to pull back, but brought her hands up to his shoulders, holding him close a moment.   
  
After a few seconds she slowly let go and stepped back.

She looked up at his face, he stared straight ahead over the top of her head, then slowly looked down, fear and something she couldn't name, in his eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry…I uh.."  
  
"Its okay. I uh…" She broke into a small smile and looked down at the floor, then back up at him.   
  
"Thank you…I..I needed that."  
  
Grissom lips twitched into a small smile and then he turned to go back to the sink.  
  
Sara turned to the living room and headed down the hall to her bedroom.

She pushed through the door and decided to leave it cracked open.  
  
Walking over to her bed, she pulled the scrunchie out of her hair and let it fall from her hand. As she lay down, she let out a soft moan, feeling her self relax and start to drift off.


	3. Housework

"Can life get any more dull?" Sara sighed to herself as she flipped through channels.  
  
At 10am on a Thursday morning, there wasn't much on. She decided she'd go back to channel 58, and watch some show called, "Newlyweds".  
  
So far it'd been quite entertaining, in a stupid, yet funny way. But at times her thoughts took her attention away.  
  
It'd been four days since Sara had felt Grissom grip her hand. At the time she couldn't look at him, she was beyond embarrassed. But all that was over, and now she had a long, 5-week vacation lying ahead of her.   
  
"Joy…and this is only day two."  
  
Grissom had called, day before yesterday, to see how she was doing, and remind her again that she needed the rest from work and to enjoy herself.  
  
She'd rolled her eyes at least 20 times during that 10-minute conversation.  
  
In the end, he told her that if she needed to talk or anything else, that she had his cell number…and his home number.  
  
She'd been quite shocked at his even saying she could talk to him, and about fell off the couch when he extended his offer to talk to his home.  
  
After they hung up she got up in a daze, fixed herself a small lunch and tried to eat. The rest of the day had been spent wondering if she was really ready, or even wanted to talk to him about what had been going on with her lately.  
  
Though, if she decided yes, he'd probably regret offering, because about half….okay…seventy five percent of her problems had to do with him. Personal and professional.  
  
Sara stopped on the channel and tried to watch and not lot her thoughts take over her mind again.  
  
As she lay there watching TV, she drifted off to sleep, only to be rudely awaked an hour later by the shrilling sound of her phone ringing. As she got up off the couch, she didn't even need to guess who it was.  
  
"Sidle"  
  
"Sara…Hi..having a good vacation?"  
  
"About as good as the last time I talked to you…I've been reduced to watching MTV for entertainment."  
  
Grissom laughed lightly. "Well….you have your car now…why don't you go somewhere, or take a flight somewhere?"  
  
Sara rolled her eyes. "Grissom…again…I don't go anywhere. And besides…there's nowhere I really want to go, and my parents is the last place I want to show up right now. There'd be too many questions and I feel I couldn't deal with all that."  
  
The line remained silent and Sara sighed.   
  
"I'm just gonna stay here. I guess I'll….clean some things up here…paint."  
  
"Yeah…that would take up a lot of your time I'd think."  
  
"Yeah. So…um…any rumors circulating yet?"  
  
"No one knows."  
  
"No one?"  
  
"Well…I do."  
  
Sara smirked.   
  
"Okay….I have to get back to work…the dreaded paper work on my desk is screaming my name."  
  
Sara smiled. "Yeah…it always is."  
  
"Have a good day Sara."  
  
"Yeah….you too. Bye."  
  
"Bye."  
  
Sara hung up the phone and smiled. It seemed too nice. Too easy…that they'd be back to civil and very kind conversations.  
  
More than anything it seemed Grissom was trying very hard to be nice and friendly. More than she wanted to, but his happy demeanor seemed to rub off on her, just like so many other things about him had.  
  
Sara picked up the remote, turned off the TV and stood up.  
  
Heading to the bathroom she pulled a pair of jeans and a dark blue v-neck shirt out of the closet.  
  
She emerged from the bathroom 20 minutes later. Fully dressed, face washed, and a tiny bit of make-up applied.  
  
She picked up her purse and took her car keys off the hook and walked out the door.  
  
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Sara bit her lip, as she looked at the color watches in her hand.  
  
She held an apple red color in her hand and decided that her room needed an overhaul.   
  
She decided that she'd have the red darkened a bit more. She picked up a white swatch and headed over to the paint center.  
  
She gave the swatches to the man behind the counter, told him what she wanted, and told him she'd be back in ten, that she wanted to check out a few more things.  
  
After giving him her name, she headed off in the of the draperies dept.  
  
Finding a silky white fabric she liked, she picked up a couple bags of them, already having the measurements and looked at the different rods and end hangings.  
  
After finding a cart, getting her paint and walking around for another hour, she had a basket full of things, and was more than ready to head home.  
  
She smiled at the young woman tending the cash register, and handed over three fifty dollar bills, receiving ten something back.  
  
After putting her bags in her car, she put the cart in its place and got in the car and headed home.  
  
She immediately changed into a pair of shorts and a button up shirt and started to clear out her room.   
  
"Guess I'll be sleeping on the couch for a few days."  
  
She went on with her work and in less than an hour and a half, was laying out plastic to keep paint from getting on the floor.  
  
Opening the can of dark red paint she stared at it a moment. The color looked wonderful in the can, but like anything else, once it was on her walls, dry, it could look horrid…, as she'd dealt with before when she was a teenager.  
  
"It sucks." She told her father as she stood back staring at the wall.  
  
It was meant to be pink….but it turned out looking like…Pepto Bismol.  
  
"Well…I paid all the money for the paint, you made the choice, you get to deal with it."  
  
After that she grudgingly finished painting the room and then spent the next 5 years of her teenage life living with it. She was more than happy to return to white walls when she moved into her dorm at college.  
  
Dipping a long stick into the paint she mixed it a bit. Then took the stick out, set it on the side of the can and dipped a large paintbrush into it.  
  
Wiping some of the excess off, she took her first level swipe.   
  
Half an hour later, ¼ of the wall was painted, and from the looks of things, she'd gotten this paint color correct.  
  
For the next 5 hours, she listened to music as she painted.  
  
Finally she tired out, and smiled to herself at all the work she'd gotten done.  
  
"Only a little bit more to go."  
  
She headed to the bathroom and turned on the shower, dropping her clothes to the floor she got in and moaned at how wonderful the hot water felt on her body.  
  
Her muscles were tired and she was achy from having sat with her legs crossed, during her painting near the floor.  
  
After another 20 minutes, she reluctantly got out, got into her pajamas and grabbed a blanket from the hall closet and fell on the couch.  
  
TV was the last thing she wanted to look at right now. Her eyes hurt, and she knew her body wanted sleep.  
  
She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep in a matter of minutes. 


	4. Evicted

I have no idea what how the management in apartment complexes work…so don't eat me if I get this completely wrong. Thanks  
  
Sara hummed to the music as she finished up the painting in her room.  
  
It had been two days since she started, but yesterday she woke up with some bug and had spent the day lying around, now cursing her voice every time it squeaked.   
  
It really sucked when your voice gave out on you. Luckily Grissom hadn't called her.  
  
She was sure he'd have thought he had a wrong number when he heard the dark, husky and slightly squeaking voice of the person on the other end.  
  
It also ruined her singing abilities and had resigned herself to humming along…although at some times she couldn't help herself. Evanescence, Lamb, and Ashlee Simpson did that to her.   
  
Dipping her brush into the white paint she started another coat along the doorframe.  
  
After this….she could relax, and then tonight, start putting her room back together.  
  
She was set on going out again for more things. She never spent much money on herself…and she didn't have money to spend on other people. So she had a pretty hefty bank account. The most she spent a month was on her rent, utilities, take-out, and the occasional clothes shopping.  
  
So…she knew she could spend a lot today and still have nothing to worry about…hell…Catherine could go on a shopping spring with her credit card and Sara would still have no worries.  
  
Catherine….NO! Don't even start thinking about work…you've been in control of your mind for the past three days, don't let the lab take it over again.  
  
20 minutes later she'd finished the painting and stood up and smiled as she surveyed the room.  
  
The window was open, the white shades pulled up and the curtains held back.  
  
It made the room look pleasant she decided. And the breeze was wonderful.   
  
"Think I'll leave it open more often."  
  
She put the lid back on the paint can and picked both of them up and headed out the door and to the kitchen.  
  
Opening the cupboard under the sink, she pushed them to one side and shut the doors.  
  
She took a bottle of water out of the fridge and went into her room, got some clean clothes and went into the bathroom.  
  
After throwing the empty bottle of water away, she grabbed her purse, her keys and headed out.  
  
Sunday was always a nice day to her it seemed. She remembered how her family would get up early in the morning, have a nice breakfast and head off to church.   
  
She'd been very involved in the High school group as a teenager, but when she got into college, she took so many classes and had so much homework to where she had no time for anything.  
  
She hadn't been in church for the past two years. Going once in a great while when she had a Sunday off at the lab. It had seemed like the right thing to do.  
  
She believed in God, but….she didn't think you had to attend church all the time to be a Christian, reading your bible was good and praying, but…in the past year, she'd totally neglected it, deeply resenting him for the hell she was going through.  
  
Now she was wondering why she had let herself get that way.  
  
She smiled as she recalled a Christian radio station she had first listened to when she moved here…and over time it had turned into either being CD or rock stations that she listened to.  
  
Turning the dial on the radio she found the station and smiled as the sweet voice of Josh Groban poured through her speakers.  
  
She hadn't listened to him in a long time.  
  
Arriving at the mall, she cut the engine and got out. As she walked away she pressed the lock button and smiled to herself when she heard it beep.  
  
The first shop she hit was a candle store. She'd always loved candles, but never really thought to waste her time buying them. She was never home, so why bother having a lot of unused, candle's around the apt.  
  
Buying a few old, vintage looking stands, some small shelves, and a few hooks, she brought an assortment of candles. From Vanilla to Blackberry, and even a few sticks of incense.  
  
As she walked out with the large bag full of her purchases she smiled to herself.  
  
Shopping is calming; hell…walking around in here, just looking at the pretty things is calming. I don't indulge myself often, but…I guess every once in a while its okay.  
  
Deciding that once her room was finished, she'd hold off on shopping for a while again, she walked into a linens store and found a large, fluffy white comforter that felt so soft.  
  
Buying that, some sheets, and a few throw pillows, all white, she paid for her things and headed out the car.  
  
She'd forgotten her cell in the car and opened it up to see a message for her.  
  
"Let me guess…" She muttered as she pushed the button for the message to play and held it up to her ear.  
  
"Hi Sara, it's Grissom.  
  
Just wanted to see how you were doing and if you wanted to join the team tomorrow morning for an early breakfast. They all miss you and want to say 'Hi.'  
  
Again, no worries…they have no idea why you're taking this vacation, other than, I thought it would be best and that you reluctantly gave in."  
  
Sara burst out laughing.   
  
Yeah….don't you sound smug.  
  
"Anyways….call me back whenever you get this and hopefully by then the guys will have figured out where exactly we're going. Bye,"  
  
Sara smiled as she took the phone from her ear.  
  
Amazingly, she was quite excited to get to see everyone and grateful to Grissom for covering so much for her.  
  
She thought it over a moment, deciding that if she said no, she'd again spend the day having done nothing, but if she said yes, then maybe the day would turn out a little brighter.  
  
Sara made her decision, and nodded her head as she pressed the speed dial for Grissom's cell phone.  
  
"Grissom"  
  
"Hi."  
  
"Oh…hey Sara. How are you?"  
  
Sara smiled.  
  
"Oh…uh…just fine thanks."  
  
"Something wrong with your voice? Or is it me?"  
  
"No…I got a bit of a cold the other night…it was a one day thing, but my voice is still kinda funny."  
  
"Ahh…I see. So, do you want to come to breakfast with the team tomorrow?"  
  
"Yeah.."  
  
Sara winced at the squeak in her voice and could hear a low laugh on the line.  
  
She took her voice down a notch and said quietly, "Yeah…I mean….its better than spending the day laying around doing nothing."  
  
"Okay….the guys decided we'd go to our usual, so meet us there about eight o' clock."  
  
"Eight o' clock. Okay…see you then."  
  
"Okay. Bye."  
  
"Bye."  
  
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Pushing the door to the restaurant open, Sara scanned the room for Grissom's face.  
  
She heard the sound of laughter coming from the other side of the glass divider and moved to the other side to see Catherine pushing the fork of eggs Warrick was holding close to her face away.  
  
"I've got my own food. Eat your own or you won't get any dessert."  
  
"Oh but Mom…why not?" Warrick said in a high voice.  
  
Sara grinned and as she took a few steps towards the table, Greg turned a little in his chair to see her and screamed her name, jumping up and practically running at her.  
  
Everyone turned to see him envelope her in a bear hug.  
  
She had a slight grin on her face, but was also saying in a high squeaky voice for him to let her go and put her down.  
  
Finally he pulled back when he heard Grissom call his name scoldingly, but with a smile on his face.  
  
He let Sara down and when he grabbed her hand and dragged her to the table she pushed her hair back around her ear.  
  
Nick was standing, and gave her a hug, then Warrick, then everyone sat down.  
  
"We need a waitress!" Greg yelled at one that was passing by, and she nodded her head and went on to what she was doing.  
  
Greg turned back to Sara, as she pulled a chair up next to his at the end of the booth and braced herself for the 50 questions she was about to have spouted at her.  
  
She looked up to see Grissom smiling softly at her.  
  
"So….watcha been up to Sara?" Greg asked Sara.  
  
"Oh….not much..I…"  
  
Just then a waitress appeared, extended a menu, which she politely refused and gave her order to the waitress. The waitress asked if anyone needed their coffee mugs refilled or needed anything, and when everyone said that they were good to go, she smiled and walked off.  
  
Greg still looked at her expectantly, as did the rest of the team.  
  
"I uh…haven't done much really. I bought paint a few days ago, repainted my room, bought some new things and just finished putting it together last night and today. So…now I have a new room."  
  
"That's great. What color did you paint it?" Catherine interjected.  
  
"Dark red…with white trim."  
  
"Dark red…someone's moody." Nick said with a smirk on his face.  
  
Sara wrinkled her nose at him. "Shut up Nick."  
  
He smiled and then Sara was drilled a bit more about her vacation. Finally her food arrived and she ate silently as everyone went on talking. Mostly about cases, then the guys started fighting about something.  
  
An hour later everyone was getting up and saying goodbye.  
  
Sara received a few hugs from the boys, a pat on the shoulder and a smile from Cath and last but not least, Sara and Grissom stood alone in the parking lot, watching as everyone drove off home.  
  
After a moment she turned to Grissom and smiled lightly.   
  
"Thanks for inviting me. I've been quite bored lately. This at least took a few hours out of the day."  
  
"Your welcome. So….all you've done so far is paint?"  
  
"Yeah…not much else to do. I mean…I am planning to go hang out at a water park in two weeks when they open, but other than that, I have no plans whatsoever."  
  
"Oh…how about…um…some time this week we go out for coffee and talk about things. Catch up a little."  
  
Sara felt a panic rising in her. It was excited, scared, and a frightened panic.  
  
"Um…"  
  
Grissom looked out into the parking lot for a moment, shoving his hands into his pockets.  
  
"If you don't want to Sara that's okay. I just thought…maybe you wanted someone to talk to. We used to talk…before….I screwed things up, but…I would like to go back to the way we used to be, if you want to."  
  
Sara looked at him incredulously. He was turned away from her, looking out into the parking lot still.  
  
What is happening here?  
  
Grissom turned a little and looked at her, seeing her looking down at the sidewalk.  
  
He sighed and nodded his head slightly.  
  
Pulling his hands from his pockets he rubbed his hand over his beard and then let his hands fall to his sides.  
  
"Well…I guess I'll go. You probably have some things to do." He slowly started to move away, but Sara's head came up and before she knew what she was doing she reached out for his hand and grasped it.  
  
Grissom turned back and was facing her in a flash.  
  
He was looking down into her face, and her eyes were drawn to his.  
  
Suddenly he blinked and the spell was broken. She realized she was still gripping his fingers in hers and slowly let go and took a small step back.  
  
She looked down at the ground, the back up at him.  
  
His eyes were on her face, and she smiled softly and said, "Yeah…I'd…I'd like that. I'd like to talk to you."  
  
His eyes seemed to change a bit and he twitched a small smiled. "Okay..I'll call you when I figure out my schedule today."  
  
"Yeah. Okay…."  
  
Sara swallowed and took a step back.  
  
"Talk to you later."  
  
She smiled and turned to walk away, but heard his soft voice say her name.  
  
She slowly turned around to see him smiling.   
  
"I'm glad you came this morning."  
  
Sara smirked and nodded her head.  
  
"Me too."  
  
He then smiled and turned around and headed for his car.  
  
Sara stood glued to the spot and as he got into the Denali, she shook herself and turned around and walked to her car.  
  
Putting her seat belt on, she opened the mirror and looked at herself. The large grin consuming her face made her laugh.  
  
{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}  
  
' …..We are sorry to inform you that this apartment complex has fallen into bankruptcy and will be shut down. All residents are expected to remove their things and be gone in two weeks. We are sorry for the bereavement…."  
  
Sara stared in anger at the letter in front of her. Being evicted from her home of all things was the last thing she needed right now.  
  
Moments ago she had a smile on her face when she told Grissom she'd meet him at Starbucks the next morning for coffee, but reaching for the pile of mail on her coffee table was something she wished she hadn't done until after she'd gotten home from that.  
  
Should she cancel now to tell him she had to start hunting for a new apartment or go on with it and tell him about it during their meeting tomorrow?  
  
"Hell…I am not gonna cancel that…I'll just…deal with it later. It should be easy to find a new place…this is Vegas after all, there's new apartment complexes and home's going up for sale everyday."  
  
Homes Sara thought suddenly.  
  
She'd never bought a real house. Had told herself that the first house she would probably ever own would be the one she moved into with a husband.  
  
She scoffed and laughed at herself for ever thinking that. At this rate, she was never going to get married.   
  
But…why should that keep me from buying a house. I can certainly afford it, and…I'm always telling myself how I wish I had more space…  
  
Sara shook her head and decided instead of just think about it, she would go do something about it. Apartments would now be a second choice, she now had her heart set on a house. A small one. She'd always wanted a garden. Something to keep her busy. A distraction, as Grissom had so often told her she needed.  
  
For that moment the worry went away, but as she walked out the door and to her car, she knew that this might not be as easy as she hoped it would be. 


	5. Coffee with a Friend

I can't believe all the praise I've received for this story. It really makes me more excited to write more chapters, so keep sending them. J   
  
For this story it seems I have ideas pouring out of me everyday and hope that I can submit at least, two new chapters a day.  
  
To those who have asked about my other fics, most popular, "CSI: HV"…I hope to start writing more chapters soon. I just got so busy with school and other things that I didn't have the time, nor energy to put up new stuff on it. Though, before I can write again, I need to reacquaint myself with it and read it over….oh boy. So..yes…I can pinpoint when exactly, but I hope to write more for it, and hopefully end it.  
  
Okay…enough of my talking, you wanna read the story……….  
  
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Sara leaned back on the couch, throwing another home magazine on the coffee table.  
  
She'd spent the whole of last night, going to some of the newer home models, and just for the heck of it, checking out some apartments.  
  
But after looking at all the beautiful homes, and seeing the size and imagining all the things she could do with them, an apartment seemed, bland and very very small.  
  
She wanted a yard, back and front. She'd not had a dog since her family's Akita, Samuri, and the thought of another dog brought a smile to her face.  
  
She'd even caught herself looking into one of the dining rooms, imagining the team over for dinner.  
  
Sara looked up at the clock. It was almost nine thirty and she needed to take a quick shower, get dressed, and head off to meet Gris.  
  
She sighed as she pushed herself up off the couch and walked down the hall to her room.  
  
She walked into her room and sighed again.   
  
"All this work…and it looks so nice too."  
  
She opened her closet and deliberated for a moment. Jeans…or…or a skirt?  
  
She never wore skirts. She wore one when she was bait in the Strip Strangler case, but since then, she'd bought another one, but it had sat in the closet, never to be used.  
  
Sara looked a little more, growled and ripped a pair of dark blue jeans off a hanger, picked a filmy white long sleeve pullover from her closet and picked up a pair of underwear and a white spaghetti strap top from her chest of drawers.  
  
Running into the bathroom she started the shower, jumped in, and got down to business.  
  
Fifteen minutes later she was out, drying her hair in a towel, pulling her clothes on….waiting to put the white pullover on till after she dried her hair.  
  
She hated drying her hair more than anything, it seemed like it took forever, though her hair was still short.  
  
As she dried it, she muttered through gritted teeth, "Please come out right…just enough curl at the edges."  
  
As she set the hair dryer down and ran a brush through her hair, she smiled, happy it had come out right and picked up the pullover, pulled it on and started putting in a tiny bit of make-up.  
  
Ten minutes later she was rushing out the door, bag slung over her shoulder, with a few home catalogues in her hand.  
  
As she drove to Starbucks, she reasoned with herself that it had been a good idea to bring the magazines. Grissom said he was trying to be her friend again, and friends usually helped one another in tough decisions like this. Besides…they both had a lot of the same likes and dislikes, though she hated to admit it.  
  
She pulled into the parking lot, looking for Grissom's SUV, and when she rounded the other side, she saw him leaning against the back of it, waiting for her. The spot next to him was open. She couldn't help but smile at him when his face changed from a bored look to a grin as she pulled into the space.  
  
In a matter of moments he was at the side of her door, opening it and taking her hand to help her out.  
  
"Morning Sara…sleep well?"  
  
They walked side by side into the coffee shop, talking in a friendly manner, like it was an everyday thing.  
  
Is this moving too fast? Sara thought to herself as she began to answer.  
  
"Yeah….pretty well. Of course, I'd done a lot of running around by the time I got home last night, so I was pretty beat."  
  
They got a small table in the corner, away from everyone else and Grissom looked at her questioningly as they sat, and she went on.  
  
"I uh…..received a letter from my apartments management company. They filed bankruptcy and all the tenants are expected to be out in two weeks."  
  
Grissom eyes widened for a moment and then he bit his lip.   
  
"Do you have somewhere to stay? Until you get settled in a new apartment?"  
  
Sara started to say that she was house hunting, but before she could say anything he became very serious and said, "If you need to, you can stay with me…I….have an extra room."  
  
It was Sara's turn for her eyes to widen in shock. But before she could say another word, he again interjected and started to apologize.  
  
"No…I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked you that. Of all things right now, I'd guess the last place you'd want to be is stuck with me for 24 hours a day."  
  
Sara couldn't help the sheepish grin the consumed her face.  
  
As he went on, she tried to listen intently, but suddenly put her hand up and smiled when he stopped talking.  
  
She opened her purse and pulled out the magazines and set them on the table, and nudged them over to him.  
  
He picked one up and skimmed through it.  
  
"A house?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"These are the newer models out on Santiago Avenue."  
  
"Uhm hmm." She said, a smile on her face.  
  
He closed it and looked up at her, a small smile on his face.   
  
"Well…if you're anything like me, you have more than enough money."  
  
Sara huffed a laugh and said, "Well….I guess I have more than enough money."  
  
You're flirting stop it! You'll scare him away!  
  
He smiled again and Sara let out of a laugh.  
  
"What are you laughing at?"  
  
"You."  
  
"Me?"  
  
"Yeah….I haven't seen you smile like that in….Oh I don't know…I just never see you smile."  
  
"Well, I could say the same for you Miss Sidle, but lets hope that bad habit is gone for good."  
  
Sara smiled lightly, and he slowly stood and pointed at the menu 50 feet away from them.  
  
"Do you want to come up and order, or do you already know what you want?"  
  
"Uh…"  
  
Sara started to rummage through her purse and as she pulled out a five, and started to hand it to him, he pushed it back into her hand and said, "Sara…I asked you out for coffee. Its on me."  
  
Sara looked at him incredulously for a moment, then smiled lightly and said, "Okay…I'll have a Hazelnut Frappucino."  
  
"One Hazelnut Frapp coming up."  
  
He walked away from the table and down the isle to the front counter.  
  
Sara smiled as he walked away. He was wearing that nice green button up and tan jacket. And best of all Jeans.  
  
She shook her head and looked out the window, trying to take her mind of places it shouldn't be.  
  
We're being friends. I am not getting myself hurt again, if anyone is going to instigate a romantic relationship, its gonna be up to him….. Oh hell. Nothing is ever gonna happen.  
  
Sara let her head fall onto her arms on the table and sighed, closing her eyes.  
  
She jumped when she felt something cold against her shoulder, and looked up to see Grissom standing there, holding the Venti cup against her shoulder.  
  
"Give me that. That's cold."  
  
"Hence….Frappucino."  
  
"Hence…don't be an ass."  
  
Grissom smiled and handed it to her and sat down opposite of her.  
  
They both sat quietly drinking their ice coffees and finally Grissom broke the silence.  
  
"Sara….if you'd like, I have the day free, and I could go look around at homes with you. That is if you want me around."  
  
"Oh please, like I want you tagging at my heels all day."  
  
Sara smiled mischievously and set her cup on the table.  
  
Grissom grinned and reached over for her cup and brought it to his lips and took a sip.  
  
Sara knew her eyes had widened inexplicably  
  
Grissom set it back down and looked at her teasingly.   
  
"What? Germ phobic?"  
  
Sara fumbled for words and a laugh came out and she said loudly, "Ahh…no…I've just never seen you do something like that."  
  
"Oh…sorry. 'Sara…was it okay that I took a sip of your coffee?'"  
  
Sara smiled and said, "Yeeah…whatever."  
  
Grissom smiled and turned to look at the front of the doors of the coffee shop.  
  
Sara picked up her cup and slowly put her lips to it, sticking her tongue out on the straw to see if she could figure out what he tasted like.  
  
You're an idiot Sidle.  
  
She looked up to see Grissom looking at her with an expectant look on his face.  
  
Sara pulled the straw from her lips, gulped down the coffee and said, "What?"  
  
Grissom smiled mischievously, "Taste better?" 


	6. Homes and Husbands

This is a dream world as you all know…so…don't hate me for making houses so cheap, yet so beautiful. I've never bought a house…so…just bear with me.  
  
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Sara looked out over the backyard. This house screamed perfect in her mind.  
  
A family had been ready to move in, having gotten things changed inside and have a rock pool put in, but in the end, backed out, saying they needed something bigger.  
  
The model management had said it had only been on the market now for two days, and that she was the first to see it.  
  
The "homey" furniture had been moved back in to make the house look nice and mixed well with the colors, as they usually did.  
  
It was a large one story, spacious living room, granite countertops and stainless steel appliances in the kitchen, airy dining room opening out onto the large patio, and a cozy family room.  
  
There was a large master suite, and a smaller bedroom. A guest bedroom is what it would be for her, or maybe an office.  
  
Sara stepped out of the house and onto the patio. It was a large one-acre lot, so besides the large rock pool, there was still a lot of running room and pretty green grass if she decided to get a dog. Maybe even two.  
  
She turned around to see Grissom smiling at her sweetly, with softness in his eyes.  
  
Sara smiled back and turned back around to look out over the yard.  
  
"This is what I've always wanted."  
  
She felt him step up next to her, his arm brushing hers and said, "Really?"  
  
"Yeah…I've always thought….." Sara quickly decided she'd best say something else, but before she could say anything Grissom turned to look at her.  
  
"Say what you were going to say, don't censor yourself in front of me."  
  
Sara looked down from his face and shrugged her shoulders. Crossing her arms and looking behind him she said quietly, "I don't know…I guess…..I guess I always thought the first home I bought would be with….with a husband."  
  
Sara closed her eyes and took a deep breath.   
  
Before Grissom could do or say anything she walked away and went back in the house and resumed looking around.   
  
Grissom watched as she ambled around the room, but could clearly see by the hunch in her shoulders, and the jerkiness in her step, that she was surely in pain.  
  
He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked out over the yard.   
  
Quietly, he whispered to himself,  
  
"Sara…..my Sara….if only…you knew."  
  
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Grissom and Sara walked into the realtor's office and said they wanted to talk about buying.  
  
They were led to a small office and sat down in two chairs.  
  
After a moment a harried woman ran in. Extending her hand she said excitedly, "Hi! So sorry to keep you waiting, Mr….."  
  
Grissom took her hand and shook it.  
  
"Grissom"  
  
The lady smiled at Sara and sat down, shaking her hand. Sara waited for her to ask for her name but then the lady started in.  
  
"Okay, I hear you're interested in the model on Champagne Circle?"  
  
Sara smiled and said, "Yes, very interested."  
  
"Great! Okay, Mr. and Mrs. Grissom., I….."  
  
Sara was about to say something, but when Grissom sat in his chair, unfazed, she didn't say a word. Only stared.  
  
She saw Grissom steal a look at her from out of the corner of her eye and saw the small smirk that formed on his face.  
  
"Mrs. Grissom? Mrs. Grissom?"  
  
Sara turned, wide-eyed and looked at the woman a moment, she slowly eeked out a yes and listened as the woman went on explaining all the nice amenities around the neighborhood.  
  
She turned her head slightly at one time and sneaked a look at Grissom, to see him smiling pleasantly at her.  
  
Suddenly the woman stopped and said, "Oh..I just love newlyweds…they're so cute."  
  
Sara sat back, but her lip, and let out a giggle.  
  
Grissom laughed and brought his arm around her chair and onto her shoulders.  
  
"Yeah…its wonderful."  
  
Sara choked and sputtered out another life, again, her eyes widened.  
  
At this rate my eyes are gonna get stuck like this. What the HELL is up with him!?  
  
After talking for another hour, some paperwork was filled out. Her bank was to be called, and her credit checked out, and if she looked okay financially, they'd call her in two days, and they could sign the real papers and could be moved in, in a matter of days.  
  
She smirked tiredly at Grissom when the woman sat back, saying how she hadn't seen couples with separate accounts very much in her career, and when she saw the last name Sidle, let out a small squeak.  
  
"My account is still under that name, haven't gotten it fixed yet."  
  
"Oh..I see, okay…well, your set to go."  
  
"Thanks!" Grissom said nicely, and Sara repeated it as they shook hands with the woman and walked out of the building.  
  
On the way to Grissom's car, Sara suddenly nudged him hard with her elbow and said, "What was all that about?"  
  
"I don't know. People kid around, even me. Friends do that. Besides you said you wanted to buy your first house with a husband."  
  
Sara stilled as he went on walking, he reached the car a few feet away and turned around to look at her and smiled.  
  
"Oh come on Mrs. Grissom…you're gonna get yourself ran over."  
  
He grinned mischievously and walked to the front and got in.  
  
Sara couldn't help the smile that formed on her face as she walked to the car, opened the door, and got in.  
  
As they drove she found a big grin on her face and turned her head and looked at him.  
  
"You're an ass hole you know that?"  
  
"No..I didn't know that, but I know I have one."  
  
"Ahhhh"  
  
"Oh don't be so surprised Sidle, you…"  
  
Sara pressed her hand over his mouth and said, "Never mind that, not a word."  
  
He bit her palm slightly as she took it away and jerked it back, again looking at him in shock.  
  
"Sara darling, stop acting so freaked out about everything, I'm just joking."  
  
"Yeah…I know that, but…you've never joked like this before….you're always so…"  
  
"Serious? Yeah…I thought that would be better placed for work, but when I'm with a close friend, it'd be best to drop it and be funny and charming."  
  
"Uhhhmm….okay..well…just don't go overboard okay. Cause you're scaring me here."  
  
"Sara….We used to be close, and joke around with one another, and I've realized that I miss that. I miss hearing your laugh and seeing your eyes light up."  
  
Sara sat shell shocked, but again he started.  
  
"Do you remember the first few days after the seminar?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"After about 5 days we were spending almost all day together, talking about forensics, and other things. I want that back. I want to be able to call you up like I used to, for no damn reason at all and just decided to go out."  
  
Sara bit her lip. This was fast….really fast paced, and she was getting sacred. Grissom wasn't some guy she just met. She'd known Grissom since she was in her early twenties; they'd been very close, as he said, but not as freely as he was being with her now.  
  
"Grissom…I'd like that too, but…I'm just scared that….that your gonna shut me out again."  
  
"I couldn't do that Sara. Not now."  
  
Sara felt her heart skip when he said that damned 'C' word.  
  
Sara decided she would believe him.  
  
"Okay….but…then there's still….my feelings."  
  
Grissom swallowed and nodded his head slightly, "I know…and…sometime soon we'll work on them. Sara….I need to be honest with you and said, you're not alone."  
  
Sara nodded, looking ahead.  
  
"Hungry?"  
  
Sara looked over at him a moment, and smiled.  
  
"Starving." 


	7. Thinking'

I don't know the names of any parks in Vegas…so bear with me.  
  
Massaging the back of her neck with her fingers. Sara fell onto her bed, more than ready to drop dead.  
  
She'd spent the last four days packing boxes, cleaning house…what little bit of cleaning there was, signing paperwork, and taking trips to the new house to make sure everything was to her liking. All in all very tiring.  
  
She felt a headache coming on when she looked over at the phone, a sadness collecting in the put of her stomach. Grissom hadn't called her in three days.  
  
Not a 'Hi, how are you?'…nothing.  
  
She decided maybe he was so busy working he couldn't take the time to call her…or…she didn't even want to think of what other problem there could be.  
  
He's pulling away again, I just know it. He can't even take having a friendly relationship with me. It's that damn hard for him?  
  
Sara closed her eyes tried to think of what she might have done wrong…or said wrong.  
  
You know what. Stop it. You didn't do anything, its him acting like some weird, happy go lucky teenager….and really, what the hell is all that about. That's not the Grissom I know…I mean..he used to joke, and it'd be smart and funny, but now…it's getting sickening…well it was, until he stopped calling me. I'd almost be willing to hear one of his retarded jokes again just to know he wasn't mad at me.  
  
Just then the phone rang. "Speak of the devil…maybe"  
  
"Sidle"  
  
"Sara…hey, it's Catherine."  
  
Catherine!  
  
"Yeah…uh, hi, what's up?"  
  
"Have you talked to Gil lately?"  
  
"Nope…I think I pissed him off again or something."  
  
"Naa…I don't think its that. He's just been acting kinda funny lately."  
  
Sara rolled her eyes, knowing there was no point to the question, but she went on.   
  
"How so Cath?"  
  
"Oh…I don't know. He jokes and acts like an ass all the time. It's driving us nuts."  
  
"Oh…yeah…that. Making me sick too."  
  
"So you have been around him?"  
  
"Three days ago. That's the last time I saw him."  
  
"Uh..huh. Well…he's been here. He's handed out assignments, then day before yesterday he started disappearing…giving us all our own cases. But by the time shift is over when any of us go to find him, the lights off, door shut."  
  
"Yeah. Not the norm for Grissom."  
  
"I think he must be going through some mid-life crisis."  
  
"Oh God, I hope so."  
  
"Though….I thought when he came back from that vacation with the beard that he was having a mid-life crisis then….and think its only just happened now."  
  
What is this….Cath and I don't talk like this. This is entirely too weird. Maybe I'm asleep…wishing I knew something about him.  
  
Sara pinched herself. Nope…not dreaming.  
  
"Sara? Are you there?"  
  
"Yeeah…hey um…I guess I'll just go out and look for him."  
  
"Yeah…maybe you should…shifts not starting for another hour or two, but the rest of us are all busy."  
  
"Yeah Cath…okay…well…I'll go see if I can find him."  
  
"Thanks Sara…hope your having a good vacation."  
  
"Yeah…great. Thanks Cath…talk to you later."  
  
The line went dead and Sara set the phone back on the cradle.  
  
Closing her eyes she let out a breath.  
  
"Damnnnnn" She hissed as she sat up, rubbing her eyes.  
  
"Off on another damn wild goose chase."  
  
She stood and went out of the room, grabbed her keys and wallet off the table and walked out to her car. Throwing her stuff into the passenger seat, she started the car and drove out of the parking lot.  
  
"Where the hell am I supposed to look?"  
  
Sara drove to his townhouse first, no Tahoe in the driveway.  
  
After that she had no idea.  
  
She drove around Vegas, hoping she might see him drive by or his car parked somewhere.  
  
After a half hour passed, and all her ideas had ran out, she decided to head back home, and hope that there was a message on her answering machine.  
  
Yeah….right  
  
Stopping at the light, at the crossing of Ramsland Park, on a whim, she looked out over the parking lot.   
  
As her eyes scanned the empty lot, it fell onto the site of one lone, black Tahoe.  
  
She smiled to herself and looked around for any traffic, and when she saw none, she changed lanes and pulled into the driveway of the park.  
  
Parking next to his Tahoe, and checking the plate just to make sure, she opened the middle passenger door and grabbed her jacket and scarf, put them on and walked towards the park grounds, locking the car and dropping the keys into her coat pocket.  
  
Sara walked the path, hoping the park would be empty enough that he'd easily be seen.  
  
About five minutes later she rounded a corner and smirked when she saw him sitting by himself on a park bench, legs laying out in front of him, as if he was bored out of his skull.  
  
As she neared, she noticed his head was down, but his eyes open. She came up quietly, and stopped directly in front of him, five feet away.  
  
"Why you hiding stranger?" Sara said quietly, hoping she wouldn't startle him.  
  
He suddenly looked up and saw it was her, then pulled himself up to sit.  
  
"Not hiding. Thinking."  
  
Sara stepped forward and walked to the bench and sat down beside him, making sure she was a few inches away, as to give him space.  
  
His head was in his hands, resting on his knees.  
  
After another five minutes passed, Sara couldn't fight her curiosity and lightly touched his shoulder.  
  
He didn't flinch, That's a good sign but he still didn't move.  
  
"Grissom what's wrong?"  
  
"Sara, just…..let me think."  
  
"Grissom….everyone is worried about you. Catherine called me to check on you."  
  
Sara heard a small, gravelly laugh. She didn't like it one bit.  
  
What the hell is up with him?  
  
Starting to grow angry, she touched his shoulder again, but this time Grissom pulled away standing up.  
  
Now very angry, Sara sat back and looked up at him, waiting for his explanation.  
  
Grissom paced back and forth in front of the bench.   
  
After a few moments, Sara couldn't stand it anymore and snapped, "What the hell is up Grissom?"  
  
Grissom stopped and looked at her a moment, then his face turned grim.  
  
"Why are you here? I'm trying to think and no one will leave me alone."  
  
Sara had, had about enough and quickly stood, her hands drawing into fists at her sides.  
  
"Dammit Grissom. You selfish bastard. I am so damn tired of this. I'm going home, and when you've gotten over yourself, maybe you could try giving me a call."  
  
Sara pushed past him and walked back to her car, holding her fists at her sides.  
  
She jumped in and slammed the door. She put the keys in the ignition, and screeched out of the lot. 


	8. Get Packin!

Sara slammed her car door, and ran up the walk to her apartment.  
  
Shoving the keys into the lock, she turned them and barged into the room, ripping her scarf off, throwing it across the room, and jerking her jacket off, throwing it at the couch.  
  
At once it all came crashing down on her and she couldn't fight off the burning tears in her eyes as she slid down the door to the floor.  
  
Hanging her head between her knees to fight off her nervous nausea, she cursed under her breath.  
  
I knew it..I knew he'd do this again, why did I open myself up again, thinking that all of a sudden things would change. I'm a really stupid person. Never again, he's gonna have to fight tooth and nail if he wants me to be nice to him again. I'm sick of his shit.  
  
Just then the phone rang. Sara hadn't the strength or want to pull herself up to answer it, and lay there, debating on whether or not it would be Grissom, or someone else, and if they'd leave a message.  
  
"Yes, no, and no."  
  
Finally the machine picked up and when it beeped she heard his gravelly voice come on.  
  
Sara laughed aloud bitterly.  
  
"Sara. I'm…I'm sorry for the way I treated you earlier. I just, I'm having some difficulty right now, with, myself and…and you. I'm…please call me, whenever you get this message, we really need to talk. Bye."  
  
"Yeah…yer gonna have to try a lot harder than that bastard." Sara muttered, pulling herself up from the floor and walking over to the machine, reaching to delete the message, she saw that there was another message waiting for her as well.  
  
She pressed the rewind button and slumped down on the couch, waiting for it to play.  
  
"Hi Sara, wanted to call and let you know that the house is completely ready and if you want to, you could start moving in as soon as tomorrow. Just…I'll be here till 8, so if you can call me before then and let me know, I'd be grateful. Talk to you soon."  
  
Sara ran her hand over her face and leaned her head back on the back of the couch.  
  
"Do I really want to do this now…or wait till Friday? Oh hell…why not."  
  
Sara picked up the phone and dialed the number, which she had memorized days ago.  
  
After three rings someone picked up and directed her to Anna's office.  
  
"Anna Hilt"  
  
"Hi, Anna, it's Sara Si…Grissom." Sara cringed..bastard  
  
"Oh, Hi Sara…I left you a message earlier, what do ya think, you want to move in early or keep as planned?"  
  
"Yeah…I thought, I'd start moving stuff in tomorrow if that's okay."  
  
"Perfect, just drop by the office first and I'll have your house keys, garage door openers, and mail key waiting for you."  
  
"Okay, great! I'm getting excited I'll be by as soon as the office is open."  
  
"Great, see ya tomorrow. Buh-Bye."  
  
"Bye."  
  
Sara set the phone down, got up and cringed, as she shook herself out. "Way too damn perky for me."  
  
Sara entered the kitchen and found herself jumping in excited ness.  
  
"I'm moving into my house tomorrow!" She said, loudly, with a bit of shriek in her voice.  
  
"Oh my gosh, I haven't done a voice like that in forever."  
  
Sara felt this weirdness coming over her as she stood in her kitchen, thinking about what she was going to do the first night in her new home.  
  
She laughed as she felt this teenager giddiness coming over her.  
  
She walked over to the couch and plopped down. She picked up the remote and turned the TV on. She smiled, finding it on MTV and waited through the commercials.  
  
She smiled as the theme music to the Ashlee Simpson show came on.  
  
"Baby…just…ask..Meeee" She sang along at the end.  
  
Sitting back, getting into the mood of watching the show she lost track of what was going on.  
  
This could work for me. Stop thinking so damn much about him. He told you himself, find a distraction. Screw him…he's being an ass right now; let him wallow in it for a while. I'm tired of kissing his ass all the damn time. I don't have to please him, I do my damn job and I do it well…that promo….oh damn. Now you're getting a little too crazy. Just shut up and watch the show.  
  
An hour later, Sara looked up at the clock.   
  
It was nearing ten, and she new if she wanted to get an early start, she best head off to bed.  
  
She looked around the room.  
  
"Couch, TV, entertainment center, side tables, lamps."  
  
She looked to the kitchen, "Coffee pot."  
  
"So…everything is packed up, just need to get furniture covered up and then load into the truck….Oh damn! I need to rent a trunk."  
  
Sara stood up and went into the kitchen and grabbed the phone book. Setting it down on the counter she walked through the doorway, but stopped when she remembered that it was ten.  
  
"Oh well…I'll go back and forth bringing boxes and then I'll get a truck when they open and move furniture."  
  
Just then the phone rang and Sara walked over to it. She stood a moment, hesitating, then picked it up.  
  
"Sidle."  
  
"Sara. Hi, it's Nick."  
  
"Nick, hey! How are things?"  
  
"Great, hey listen, I found out from Grissom that you were moving."  
  
Sara sighed softly and smiled, "Yeah…uh. I'm getting booted out of my apartment complex so I though, what the hell…why not a house?"  
  
"Yeah that's awesome, well anyways, I got two weeks off starting tomorrow and Gris told me you are gonna start moving in Friday, I thought maybe I'd lend a hand."  
  
"Oh, that's really nice Nicky, uh…well, here's how it's going now. I got a call a few hours ago from Anna and she told me that I could start moving in tomorrow."  
  
"Oh really, well…still, I'd still like to come help, if you want."  
  
Sara smiled. "Well, yeah. Okay. That'd be great, um…"  
  
"How early do you want to start?"  
  
That brought a grin to her face. "Bout, six am."  
  
"Six am, I'll be to the apartment five to that.  
  
"Great, thanks so much Nick you don't know how much I appreciate it."  
  
"Yeah. No problem. Hey uh, Sara…did you talk to Grissom earlier?"  
  
Sara cringed, Guess Grissom went to work and treated everyone rudely, partly my fault dammit."  
  
"Yeah, uh…I didn't get very far."  
  
"Mmhmm. I'm sorry Sara, for Cath sending you out on him."  
  
"Nah, it's okay Nicky, I needed to talk to him anyways."  
  
"Yeah. Does he know you're moving tomorrow…is he coming to help?"  
  
"No. He doesn't know…and, I'm not…just don't tell him Nick…he'll find out when he really wants to, so just keep it quiet. I mean…it's okay to tell everyone else, Cath, Warrick, Greg…but…yeah."  
  
" I understand Sara, and again, I'm sorry for…what's happening. See you tomorrow."  
  
"Thanks, see ya Nick."  
  
Sara hung the phone up and looked down the hall to her bedroom.  
  
"Tomorrow is gonna be such a long day."  
  
As she walked down the hall, she felt a small smile pull at the corner of her lips. 


	9. Park Apologies'

Okay…..first I want to say that, I totally agree with whomever said that the whole fight between Grissom and Sara seemed forced. But….the other night I realized that I was turning this fic into something I totally didn't want it to be. I know excuses are crap, but I must say that I am betting the night I wrote that chapter where Grissom seemed like a complete wacko, was the night my dad let me finish the last of the bottle of wine…so..theres my reasons for the 'crap', and I promise from now on…when I write..there will be no drinking. I'm sorry to have…forced this…but…I am gonna try my best to redeem myself, and hopefully we'll all be able to forget that I ever screwed up.  
  
Hope to make the rest of this story, perfect as ever. Thanks for reading, and for your reviews. You don't know how much receiving them means to me, and how they help me go on with the story. Thanks!   
  
Okay….more to add now…even though we've all fallen into the dark ages…I hope to keep my spirits up enough to finish this…as much as it hurts…I'll keep going…enjoy  
  
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"Dammit!" Sara yelled as she turned over and looked at the clock.  
  
She'd gone to bed three hours ago, and still hadn't had one minute of sleep.  
  
With 6am being only four hours away, she knew that tomorrow she'd be in the most irritable mood ever.   
  
Throwing the covers off, she padded into the bathroom and splashed cool water on her face.  
  
Turning out the door she headed down the hall to the kitchen for a glass of hot milk, hoping it'd make her sleepy.  
  
Just…go to sleep, and call him in the morning. You shouldn't be losing sleep over him. This makes you look like some immature teenage girl, acting like this. Now drink the damn milk and fall asleep  
  
After having her little pep talk and drinking her milk, she walked down the hall, and smiled after she covered her mouth from a yawn.  
  
Falling into bed she hugged a pillow close as she drifted off.  
  
Writing 'Kitchen' on one of the cardboard boxes in large black pen, she dialed the number to Uhaul and waited for somene to pick up.  
  
After telling them that she needed a large truck, she hung up and looked over at the round wall clock, above her door.  
  
Yawning as she stood and threw the pen into a small box by the kitchen entry, she picked up her mug of coffee and took a sip, wondering where the hell Nick was.  
  
Gathering plates from the cupboard and wrapping them in newspaper she set to work, hoping by the time the first box was done, that he'd arrive.  
  
Just then her cell rang, she picked it up from the counter and brought it to her ear.  
  
"Sidle"  
  
"Sara, hey!"  
  
"Hey Nick, whats up…you're about 20 minutes late."  
  
"Yeah…sorry, um….I have to tell you something right now."  
  
Okay….whats happened now?  
  
"Tell me Nick."  
  
After a few moments Nick sighed and said, "I'm not the only one coming to help."  
  
Sara brought the phone from her ear a second, looked at it funny, then brought it back.  
  
"Okay Nick, who exactly is coming then?"  
  
"Grissom is."  
  
Sara sucked in air, when she heard his rough, angry voice on the other end.  
  
Shit!  
  
"Oh….uh…hi Grissom."  
  
Aparently, Nick had gotten the phone back and quietly said, "We'll be there in 5 minutes Sara."   
  
"Nick….why..did you tell him?"  
  
"I didn't….uh…look…I'll talk to you in a few okay?"  
  
Sara sighed, feeling something nasty forming in the pit of her stomach.  
  
"Yeah…okay..bye."  
  
Sara hung up and walked into the living room, and fell down on the couch.  
  
She was going to call him once they'd gotten a few things moved to the house…she just…was too tired at the moment and felt like putting it off…besides…it wasn't like she owed him an apology.  
  
Just then the doorbell rang.  
  
God, help me  
  
She sighed and stood up, walking slowly to the door.  
  
She unlocked it, and slowly pulled the door open.  
  
Grissom stood leaning against the frame, while Nick stood right behind him, hands in his pockets, looking down.  
  
Sara brought herself to smile and said cheerily…a little too cheerily for her liking, "Hey."  
  
"Hi." Grissom said quietly. Nick muttered something, which Sara guessed was a Hi.  
  
She opened the door a little more and let them in.  
  
Nick immediately asked her if any boxes needed to be moved to the living room from her bedroom and bathroom. Sara smiled and said, "Yeah…two in the bathroom, and I think four in the bedroom."  
  
"Okay."  
  
Sara walked into the kitchen as Grissom stood near the door. Still looking around, acting as if he'd never been here before.  
  
Sara couldn't stand the silence any longer and quietly said, "Whats up Grissom?"  
  
Grissom looked over at her for a moment, and Sara held his gaze until he looked away.  
  
"Sara…why didn't you call me? Why didn't you tell me you were moving today?"  
  
Sara took a swig of her coffee, and shook her head slightly.  
  
Looking back up at him, as he came over to the kitchen island she bit her lip and said, "Why do you think Grissom? I mean…I thought things were going okay, and then, you start acting like some…some jokey retarded teenager, and then when I try to come talk to you, and see if you're okay, if something's wrong…you ask me why I'm there and why I won't just leave you alone. If you ask me, that gives me a reason to be pissed at you."  
  
Grissom swallowed and looked up at her.  
  
Sara smiled and said, "And don't just say my name and stop there….saying my name doesn't do anything and it never has. You said, you wanted to be my friend, that you wanted to be honest with me. Well…do what you told me you were going to do, because I'm tired of you doing this to me all the time."  
  
She waited a few more moments, and when he still didn't say anything, she scoffed and started to leave the room.  
  
As she reached the opening of the kitchen, he stepped towards her and grabbed her elbow.  
  
"Don't walk away. I may not be able to tell you everything in less than ten seconds, if you'd stop walking away, and give me a minute, maybe you'd get your answers."  
  
Sara froze, feeling a burning heat through her thin cotton shirt.  
  
Looking up at him, he slowly released his grip and looked down the hall, then back at her.  
  
"Nick!"  
  
Nick called back from the bedroom, simply yelling, "What!"  
  
Grissom smirked and said, "Sara and I are going for a short walk, think you can manage?"  
  
"Yeah..man, of course…..take yer time."  
  
Sara rolled her eyes, and turned away from him, looking towards the door.  
  
"Come on Sara, we need to talk." Grissom said queitly, taking her elbow lightly and leading her towards the door.  
  
Sara sighed and once they were outside and slowly walking on the sidewalk she kept her mouth shut, letting him collect his thoughts.  
  
After a few minutes they reached the park and walked around the field, until Grissom led her over to a park bench and motioned for her to sit down.  
  
He remained standing, and before she could say anything he started speaking…  
  
"Sara, I need to apologize to you for my behavior this week. It was uncalled for, rude, annoying, and sickening."  
  
Sara blinked, but brought her eyes up to his face. She smiled, seeing him looking down, hands in his pockets deep in thought again.  
  
After a few moments he started speaking again.  
  
"I don't know what came over me. I guess…I don't know. There is no way to explain my childishness last week and I hope I didn't totally put you off. I thought I could handle this…but it seems I can't. And I think its because I'm trying to handle it on my own.   
  
I don't ask you what bothers you, I don't think of what could hurt or offend you. I told you that I wanted to be your friend, and a friend knows these things. I don't…so I think we need to talk more. Again…I need to be completely honest with you…and I will try my hardest. Will you please forgive me and let me show how sorry I am by helping you move into your new home?"  
  
Sara smirked, licking her dry lips and quickly stood and pulled Grissom into a friendly hug.  
  
At first he was tense, which she knew he would be already, but after a moment or two she could feel his arms tighten around her a little.  
  
As they pulled away they both smiled lightly and said started to head back down the walk, Grissom falling in right beside her.  
  
"The jokes were a bit much, but…I was still glad to have you around." Sara said queitly, and truthfully.  
  
"And it's great to be around you. I was getting so damn tired of walking on my tip toes around you."  
  
Sara turned to face him and they both stopped.  
  
"Tip toes around me? Of all people to be careful, it had to be me. You were likely to bite my head off at the slightest thing. You did even..and may I say I had thoughts of murder in my head, your lucky I got that little pep talk from Nicky…though after that I felt like killing him too."  
  
Grissom stood staring at her trying to think of something to say.  
  
Sara's eyes darkened from excitement and humor to embarassment and fearfulness.  
  
She started to turn to walk away, but he grabbed her hand and pulled her back.  
  
"I'm glad you told me that…and..I apologize for that one too."  
  
Sara smiled and said, "Before this turns into 'stop and go' I think we need to get back to my aparment…I have moving to do."  
  
Grissom smiled and let go of her hand, again, they fell into step with eachother. 


	10. Rest

Pulling her hair back into a black scrunchie, Sara blew out a breath and stepped out into the backyard, and smiled, seeing Nick and Grissom talking quietly, leaning on either side of one of the patio beams.  
  
She turned around and went back inside and walked into the very empty kitchen.  
  
What was wrong with her, her mind must have completely disappeared on her because the thought of furniture to fill this big house had never crossed her mind. And even thought she wasn't so girly most of the time, she was a woman, and no matter how ungirly you could be, you always thought of things like that.  
  
Sara sighed and walked over to the cupboard, and pulled out three glasses, opened the freezer to see if there was ice and smiled happily when she saw a whole tray full.  
  
Putting ice in all the cups, she switched the fridge over to water and filled the glasses. Picking up two of them, she turned to the left and headed out of the kitchen and out the doors onto the patio.  
  
She smiled as she came up behind them and hearing them still speaking in low tones she cleared her throat. They both turned and looked at her stunned.  
  
She smiled and held out both glasses. The men looked as if she had just handed them a million dollars, they both took large gulps as she stood there with a grin on her face.  
  
Nick came up for air first and wiped his mouth with his arm.  
  
"Sara…exactly how long have you been standing there?"  
  
She smirked and tilted her head to the side in mock thought, "Oh…I'd say about a minute or two…why, talking about something I should hear?"  
  
She gave them both straight looks and they looked at each other for a moment then shook their heads.  
  
Grissom smiled and handed her his empty glass. "Thank you Sara, that was certainly refreshing."  
  
Sara grinned, "Welcome."  
  
She held her hand out for Nick's empty glass and once she held it in her hand, she turned around and left the men to themselves.  
  
Nick and Grissom didn't talk much, and Sara remembered how much Nick had always looked up to Grissom, now it seemed Nick didn't need constant patting on the back and encouragement. He'd grown up, and now seemed to be able to talk to Grissom as easily as she used to.  
  
She shook her head, setting the glass into the deep sink.  
  
Walking around the island she headed through the living room and down the hall to her room.  
  
Unpacking clothes and hanging them in the closet had turned into quite a boring task. And the house looking so damn empty was sorta giving her the creeps.  
  
"I really need to go shopping…hopefully…oh..who am I kidding, I'll be done with all this by at midnight tonight at the latest, then I can go furniture shopping and I'd be done."  
  
She looked over at the clock. "6:42". Her stomach rumbled when she read the time and she looked over at the door, contemplating on what she should do about food.  
  
Nick was standing in the door, smiling kindly. "Thinking what I'm thinking Sara?"  
  
"Yes! I'm starving."  
  
"Okay..what do you want my vegetarian miss?"  
  
"Well..depends on where you're going."  
  
"We're being cheap. McDonalds."  
  
Sara smirked, "Okay…a large salad, and fry."  
  
"Cool…be back in about 20 minutes."  
  
He started to walk away, but then turned back.  
  
"Why don't you go keep Grissom company while I'm gone…this place is sure empty."  
  
Sara regarded him with a weird look, then looked down at the floor.  
  
"I know..its kinda creepy."  
  
"Yeah..well..be back in a while."  
  
He turned and headed down the hall.  
  
Sara stared after him for a moment, then threw down the shirt she was holding, stood and decided to take Nick's advice….wondering if Grissom had actually said it, and gotten Nick to say it for him.  
  
Sara stepped out onto the patio, and looked around for Grissom.  
  
She finally spotted him, crouching in front of one of the bushes near the pool.  
  
She smiled and slowly walked out across the grass to him.  
  
Standing behind him she rubbed her hands together a moment, smiled and shook her head.  
  
Taking a chance, she walked over beside him and bent down next to him.  
  
He looked startled at first, then relaxed. Sara smiled and tried to find what he was looking at.  
  
After a moment she spotted it, a cocoon hanging at the middle branch of a dying bush.  
  
He looked at it and then turned his head and looked at her.  
  
"I'm afraid it might fall if this bush dies. That cocoon hits the floor…"  
  
"Yeah..I know…but we can't touch it. I think we need to just let it go, let things go as they're intended."  
  
Grissom watched her a moment, then smiled, "You're always right."  
  
Sara squinted her eyes a moment, then playfully smacked him in the arm.  
  
"What were you and Nick whispering about?"  
  
Grissom slowly stood and Sara came up, watching, waiting.  
  
"Nothing, at least, nothing to do with you."  
  
Sara could see a smirk pulling at the corners of his mouth.  
  
She squinted her eyes in mock anger at him and said simply without emotion, "Liar."  
  
His slowly forming smirk turned into a small smile and he shook his head and walked slowly back to the patio.  
  
In a moment, she was in step with him and she kept her head down, quiet.  
  
He sat down on the edge of the patio and looked up at her, patting the open space next to him.  
  
Sara smirked and sat down. Before she realized it, he reached for her right hand and held it firmly in his.  
  
Sara didn't know how to react, but made herself sit quietly, watching, waiting.  
  
After a moment she could feel his thumb, softly massaging over the back of her knuckles, and she smiled at the sensation. Her hands hurt a lot from pulling boxes apart and dinging them against things.  
  
He stopped a moment, looked at her hand and carefully traced a scratch with his thumb.  
  
"Do your hands hurt a lot?"  
  
Sara surprised by the question decided to be truthful and for once try not to be so bullheaded and strong.  
  
"A little, I've hit them and scratched them against things a few times."  
  
He opened his fingers out and stretched hers outward as well, softly running his thumb over her fingernails.  
  
He then brought his hand down slowly to her wrist and took her hand firmly again when her fingers drew back.  
  
She still was curious as to exactly what this was, and decided to stop this before she got too attached. She squeezed his hand lightly and then slowly pulled it from his.  
  
She noticed a small twitch at the corner of his lips, then a small smile form.  
  
"You have beautiful hands Sara."  
  
Sara was caught of guard by this and could only mutter a low, "Thanks."  
  
After a moment she closed her eyes and when she opened them, she realized how tired she really was. She let her eyes close again and moment and next thing she knew she found herself drifting sideways towards him.  
  
As she started to rock back to her space, he reached his hand around and pushed her back a little towards him and muttered, "Your tired, you can lean against my shoulder for a while…take a cat nap until Nick gets back with dinner."  
  
Sara was a little shocked, but so tired she couldn't keep her eyes open another second. So she acquiesced and leaned her head on his shoulder, feeling the weight of the world, disappear.  
  
His hand was still pressed against the back of her shoulder, and he smiled when he felt her relax into him.  
  
After a few moments, he could hear small, steady breathing, knowing she had drifted off.  
  
He smiled softly, feeling his heart jump a little at his boldness, but…relieved at the same time.  
  
How might he'd wanted her near to him lately. He'd missed their closeness before. The brushes, the leaning. This more than half made up for it.  
  
He smiled as she took a deep breath and leaned against him more.  
  
Looking up at the darkening sky he smiled and said a small prayer of thanks. 


	11. Sleeping Bags

If this chapter is weird or doesn't make sense, forgive me. It's 2:33am…and I felt the need to write, though I feel as though I could fall out of my chair to the floor and be instantly asleep. But…enjoy!  
  
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Sara's eyes flashed open and she looked around. She was….oh…the house. A small smile pulled at the corners of her mouth. She slowly sat up, feeling the fuzziness of sleep still in her head and slowly stood, covering her mouth when she yawned. Still in her day clothes, she walked over to the dresser and pulled out a pair of pajama pants and a large dark blue LVPD shirt.   
  
She walked into her large Mexican tiled bathroom and washed her face over one of the deep granite sinks. Looking into the mirror, she grabbed a towel and dried her face off.  
  
Pulling off her clothes, and leaving them in a pile against the bathroom door, she pulled on her pajama pants and shirt.  
  
Yawning as she walked out of her room, she was set on going to the kitchen and getting some ice cream and heading back to bed. Stepping into the living room she froze, seeing Grissom laying on a sleeping bag in one corner of the room, and Nick on the other side, opening out a large green sleeping bag.  
  
She rubbed her face a moment, wondering if she was imagining things then quietly whispered, "Nick, what are you doing?" Nick turned around and smiled softly at her.  
  
"She finally awakes. Your food is waiting for you. Salads in the fridge, fries are in the bag in the microwave."  
  
Sara looked up at the ceiling then back at him, "Nick…why are you two still here?"  
  
"Someone's moody." Nick said teasingly.  
  
Sara regarded him with a pointed look and he threw his hands up in defeat.  
  
"Okay…okay…."  
  
Nick looked over at Grissom. He was leaning against the wall, a pillow between him and it, his jacket and clothes from the day still on.  
  
Sara looked over as well…felling guilty. Gosh he must be hot in those clothes…and…  
  
Nick took her arm and led her through the kitchen and into the family room.  
  
"You win. You can't say a word to him, but because your alarm system hasn't been set up yet, Grissom didn't like the idea of you staying alone here on your first night."  
  
Sara looked at him incredulously. "Your kidding right?"  
  
Nick looked at her seriously, "Honest Sara, why the heck would I make something like that up. It's not like I wanted to have a sleepover." He grinned at the last part.  
  
Sara smirked and said, "Oh come on Nick, girls love slumber parties."  
  
Turning quickly and walking into the kitchen, leaving Nick to stand with his mouth hanging open, she opened the fridge and picked up her salad.  
  
Looking at it, she shook her head and put it back. Shutting the door and turning to see Nick had disappeared. She heard the guest bathroom door shut, and knew she had nothing to worry about.  
  
Sara poked her head around the corner of the kitchen entry and smiled softly at the site of Grissom.  
  
He was slowly sliding down the wall with the pillow, his light jacket bunching up around his shoulders.  
  
Sara looked down the length of him, to see his shoes were still on.   
  
On impulse she found herself walking across the soft, white carpeting to take his shoes off.  
  
When she reached him she stopped and thought a moment, What are you doing?…Oh hell…I doubt he'd mind.  
  
She bent down and slowly un-did that laces, so as not to wake him. He looked very tired.  
  
Loosening the laces a bit she carefully took the shoe off and set it on the floor.   
  
Starting on the next one, she took her eyes from his face and focused on what she was doing.  
  
When she'd succeeded on taking his other shoe off and setting it next to the other one she looked back towards Grissom's face and almost fell backwards, when she met his eyes.  
  
"Grissom…um. I.."  
  
"It's okay Sara. Thanks…I was going to take them off, my feet were killing me, but I drifted off before I had the chance."  
  
Sara smiled. "Yeah…moving is definitely tiring."  
  
"Very…though..I can barely remember what it was like when I moved here all those years ago."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
Sara looked away then back at him, to see him watching her intently.  
  
She looked down at the floor and fell back to sit.  
  
She looked around the room, then settled her eyes on him. He was still looking at her, but she went on.  
  
"I think I need to go furniture shopping tomorrow. I can't believe I forgot about furniture…its such a dumb thing."  
  
"Nah, you were busy, and its not like you had a lot of time to think about this, your neighbors will have to be out of that place in the next few days."  
  
"Yeah…you have a point." Sara sighed and felt a yawn coming on, but clamped her mouth together to stifle it.  
  
In the end she lost, and her mouth opened slightly and she covered her mouth.  
  
"You should sleep Sara, you look tired still."  
  
"Do I?…well..I agree…I feel beat."  
  
Grissom smirked and slowly sat up, repositioning the pillow.  
  
"So are you going to ask why the heck I'm sleeping on a sleeping bag in you living room?"  
  
Sara shook her head softly, "Nope, Nick already explained."  
  
"And what did Nick say?"  
  
"He said you didn't think I'd be safe alone here tonight."  
  
"Sara, I know you can defend yourself, but.."  
  
"No..it's okay Gris, I understand, and…it's…" She smiled softly, "…It's nice to know someone cares enough to stay and…..'protect' me."  
  
Grissom looked at her seriously a moment. "Sara…someone has always been there to protect you."  
  
Sara's eyes were caught by Grissom's when she looked up and she felt the urge to say something to him regarding 'protection', but decided against it.  
  
"Yeah. I know"  
  
"Do you really. I am, and will always be here for you Sara."  
  
"Yes, I know. Thank you."  
  
"The pleasure is mine. You best go and sleep, you have a long day ahead of you tomorrow."  
  
Sara smiled and nodded her head. She stood and walked into the family room, and opened reached into one of the open boxes, retrieving a sleeping bag. She walked into her room, grabbed two pillows and returned to the living room.  
  
Grissom was still away and when she walked in, he sat up and looked at her funny.  
  
"Sara, go and sleep in your room, you don't have to sleep out here with us."  
  
"Oh and miss out on all the fun. I think not."  
  
Grissom watched her as she looked around the room for a place to put her sleeping bag.  
  
He again felt the urge to motion to the space beside him and almost said something, but kept his mouth shut.  
  
Boxes took up the other two corners and Sara didn't want to sleep in the middle of the room. She sighed and said, "Oh well..I guess I will…"  
  
"Just lay it over here..theres space next to my bag."  
  
Sara looked at him a moment, then the floor . She walked over and set her bag out lengthwise, while his was bag was going out from the wall.  
  
Setting the pillows at the head of the bag, she saw Grissom's head would be quite close to hers. She wondered if she should move, but decided against it. If he wanted her to scoot a bit, he'd tell her..if not..whatever.  
  
He closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall closing his eyes.  
  
Sara felt a wave of sleepiness come over her and decided she'd lie down now.  
  
Lying down on the bag, she smiled at the softness of the carpet beneath her.  
  
Lying her head on the pillows she felt a weight lifted and her head was clear.   
  
She smiled as she let herself drift to sleep. 


End file.
